Ep 312: Humanity in the Arts with Ranelle Wolf and guest Rabbi Josh Franklin on hmTv

Episode 312: Humanity in the Arts

In this soulful and intellectually rich episode of Humanity in the Arts, host Ranelle Wolf sits down with Rabbi Josh Franklin of the Jewish Center of the Hamptons for a journey through faith, creativity, and the search for meaning.

Recorded at the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center, this conversation explores how art and spirituality shape moral imagination, community, and courage in challenging times. Rabbi Franklin reflects on interfaith study, the power of Torah as a mirror for personal growth, and the surprising beauty within the Jewish diaspora experience. Together, they examine the creative calling, the deeper meaning of Lech Lecha (“go to yourself”), and how artists like Marc Chagall bridged tradition and modernity to express suffering, hope, and transcendence.

At its heart, this episode calls us to know ourselves, honor difference, build bridges, and create beauty in a fractured world. Whether you are an artist, a seeker, or someone trying to live with purpose, this conversation will inspire you to see your life as a canvas and your values as your greatest work of art.

Tune in. Reflect deeply. And go to yourself.

Transcript

Episode 312 — hmTv

Host: Ranelle Wolf
Guest: Rabbi Josh Franklin, Jewish Center of the Hamptons

 Ranelle: Hello. Welcome to Humanity Matters at the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center. A very special place where you are invited into a sobering black-white-and-gray world that makes you ask: What does it mean to be alive? Why am I here?

Humanity Matters explores art, religion, and Western thought. I am honored to sit with Rabbi Joshua Franklin from the Jewish Center of the Hamptons. He is modern, musical, a writer, a bridge-builder, and a deeply thoughtful leader. And yes, he is simply cool.

Rabbi Josh: Thank you. I am turning a little red here. It is an honor to be back.

Ranelle: You were my first podcast guest. I did not know this would grow into an educational program partnering with Stony Brook, exploring art, religion, and Western thought through the Judeo-Christian history of visual culture. How perfect that we begin with someone who works in the world of both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. So let me ask you. What do we share morally and spiritually that connects us, and where do we differ?

Rabbi Josh: I will start by saying the New Testament is not my book. However, to build bridges we have to understand our neighbors’ texts, ideas, and values. So for many years, we have held shared classes with St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in East Hampton. We study shared scripture, and we look at where our traditions converge and where they differ. For example, the Ten Commandments. We think we all have the same list. We do not. Jews count differently than Catholics and Protestants. We do not even call them commandments. We call them “utterances.” The differences matter. Not to divide us, but to deepen respect.

Ranelle: Respecting difference. We need that more than ever.

Rabbi Josh: Yes. Bridge-building is not pretending we are the same. It is honoring difference without fearing it.

On Torah Study and Relevance

Ranelle: You teach Torah in a way that wakes people up. Why do we study Torah? Why does it matter?

Rabbi Josh: People often think Torah study is about knowledge. It is not. You can memorize it and never grow. Torah is a mirror. We study it to understand ourselves, our purpose, our ethics, our lives. It is not about what you know. It is about who you become.

Genesis, Exile, and Blessing

Ranelle: We recently studied Genesis again. Adam, Noah, the rainbow, and the Tower of Babel. Something you taught shook me. You reframed diaspora from curse to blessing.

Rabbi Josh: When the Israelites were exiled to Babylonia, it became the first great diaspora. Two Hebrew words: Galut (exile) and Golah (diaspora). Same root: discovery. When Jews live among other cultures, we learn, we synthesize, we grow. Judaism thrives when it engages with humanity, not shuts itself off. Exile can wound, but diaspora can illuminate.

Creativity, Calling, and “Lech Lecha”

Ranelle: Let’s talk about creativity and calling. The Torah portion Lech Lecha. People translate it “Go forth.” You taught us a better translation.

Rabbi Josh: “Lech Lecha” means “Go to yourself.” Before you go anywhere in the world, you must travel inward. Artists, spiritual seekers, leaders, humans: your first journey is into your own soul. Creativity is self-revelation.

Rabbi Josh: There is a story. A man makes a detailed morning checklist so he will not forget anything. He wakes, checks each item off, and suddenly panics. He forgot the most important thing: himself. We must not lose ourselves while trying to become someone else.

Jewish Art, Imagery, and Chagall

Ranelle: Judaism has a complicated relationship with imagery. Yet we have Chagall.

Rabbi Josh: Jewish tradition hesitated to depict divine forms. Yet artists always found a way. The Haggadah illuminated Jewish storytelling with images because creativity is required to transmit truth. And Chagall used Christian imagery, including the cross, to express Jewish suffering. He was not abandoning Judaism. He was translating pain across traditions so people could understand.

Humanity, Memory, and Future-Making

Ranelle: As our founder Dr. Bernie Furshpan always reminds us, memory alone is not enough. After remembering, now what? We must create heroes, art, music, laughter, hope. We must build.

Rabbi Josh: That is why interfaith work matters. That is why education matters. After October 7, every faith leader in East Hampton stood with us at our rally. And we stand with them when they need us. That is how real community functions.

Closing

Ranelle: Thank you, Rabbi. You remind us to go inward, honor difference, seek meaning, and create beauty. To everyone watching, remember: art, faith, and history are not separate rooms. They are one living house. You do not have to be a painter to be an artist. A rabbi, a lawyer, a filmmaker, a comedian, a teacher, a human being can live creatively. You were born to create meaning.

Thank you for joining us. Be well, be inspired, and go to yourself.

[Music fades]